Could've Been Me
by Michelle285
Summary: First Luke/Lorelai attempt. This is a song fic. What if Lorelai had gone through with her marriage to Max? Rating probably too high...overly cautious.


_Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. I'm just borrowing them. If I owned this song, someone else would sing it. _

_ A/N: So, I don't really like this song, nor do I like Billy Ray Cyrus, but I heard this song today, and I couldn't help but think that this would be the perfect song for Luke if Lorelai had gone through with her marriage to Max. So, we're going to pretend she did. This is my first Luke/Lorelai fic. Okay, now, enjoy! _

_**I hear you just got married,  
Took a month long honeymoon,  
And you were all smiles at the wedding,  
You cried when you kissed the groom.  
I got no invitation.  
I guess the mailman didn't bring it to me.  
But I see the whole thing in slow motion  
Every night as I try to sleep.**_

_**My buddy John said you looked real pretty  
And you acted like you were in love.  
He said the preacher asked for objections  
And he thought about standin' up.  
I told John he must have been crazy  
'Cause you were just about to say I do.  
He just gave me a wink and said all he could think  
Was it could've been me with you.**_

She did it. Lorelai Gilmore got married to Max Medina. Luke knew she would, and he knew they were perfect together. They were both from the same kind of people. Rich, trust fund, Hartford, smart…

Sure, he got her wedding invitation. It taunted him sitting on the table all pretty and happy. He wished that Kirk, acting as the mailman, had lost it or something. Luke was actually surprised anyone got the invitation. After all, Kirk had a very bad reputation as a mailman. The one time Kirk's scatterbrain-ness would have been useful, Kirk was being responsible. Luke didn't go to the wedding, he just couldn't. He thought not going would mean he wouldn't be haunted by it. He was wrong. He saw the whole thing every night. It made sleeping a true challenge.

Luke couldn't help but hear Ms. Patty and Babette talking. They were still going on and on about Lorelai's wedding. He guessed it was better that they did it now while Lorelai was still on her honeymoon. He wondered why she made it a month long. What about Rory?

Babette actually brought that point up once. Luke was unfortunately able to miss Ms. Patty's response because he was too busy thinking about that as well. They talked about everything under the sun. They talked about how pretty Lorelai looked, how she never stopped smiling, how she cried during the vows. Luke sighed as he brought them more coffee. He wished they would just stop already.

"Luke honey," Ms. Patty began. "We missed you at the wedding. Where were you, dear? Lorelai looked beautiful. I wish you could have seen her."

Luke didn't get a chance to answer (he didn't understand why they asked, he had answered this question how many times now), because then Babbette spoke up in her husky voice. "Yeah, when the preacher asked for objections, I would sure we would see you stand up. I thought about doing it when I saw you weren't there, but by then they were about to say I do…"

"Why would I have any objections?" Luke asked in a constricted voice. The truth was they had just hit on a major reason why he didn't go. He wasn't sure he could've restrained himself from telling Lorelai he loved her, and he wasn't going to ruin her day.

"You can't fool us," Ms. Patty said trying not to roll her eyes. "I saw Lorelai up there getting married to Max, but I just kept thinking, it could've, should've been you."

When Luke walked away, he felt Ms. Patty pinch his butt. He was thinking about how old that was getting when he heard her whisper to Babette. "I can't say I'm complaining though."

Babette agreed, and Luke successfully tuned them out quickly. He wasn't in the mood to hear them discuss him and his…accessories.

_**It could've been me  
Standin' there with you.  
It could've been me  
And my dreams comin' true.  
But those dreams move on  
If you wait too long.  
It took me 'til now to see  
It could've been me**__._

_It could've, should've been you_. The words echoed over and over in his head. He wasn't sure he believed Ms. Patty, but he wasn't denying he enjoyed hearing someone else say that. He had always dreamed of having a relationship with Lorelai. He knew now that he could never be anything more than her coffee provider. If he was lucky, her best friend.

_**I don't guess I ever told you  
That I went out and bought you a ring.  
I even carried it around in my pocket  
Waitin' to say the right thing.  
I pulled it out the other day,  
But the diamond had lost its shine.  
Well, I know how it feels 'cause my eyes grow dim  
When I think you could have been mine**__._

Luke walked up to his apartment after he had closed for the day. It was hard staying in the diner the whole day. Jeez, Lorelai had gotten married over two weeks ago and the town still couldn't stop talking about it. Something always happened in this town and the townies always gossiped. The one time when he wanted something to happen, wanted to hear some fresh gossip, nothing would happen and there would be nothing to talk about. All he heard about was Lorelai's wedding.

He reached into his nightstand drawer. He pulled out the diamond ring. His father had given it to him before he died. He remembered his father telling him his mother wanted him to give it to the girl with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life.

He remembered how he always admired it on his mom's finger. He had always thought it caught the light just the right way to make it sparkle the most. He turned his lamp on and moved the ring under the light. He hated how the sparkles seemed to mock him now. They were no longer pretty and he was sure there were not as many as there should be. If it was possible, the diamond looked like the shine was almost gone.

He couldn't help but feel like he got the bad end of the deal. He couldn't give the ring to anyone now, because the girl he really wanted to spend his life with was taken. Every time he thought of that, his eyes got sad. He completely understood how the diamond felt. _Okay, Luke, you've really lost it now. Talking about the diamond as if it is a real person. That's something Lorelai—never mind._

_**It could've been me  
Standin' there with you.  
It could've been me  
And my dreams comin' true.  
But those dreams move on  
If you wait too long.  
It took me 'til now to see  
It could've been me.**_

"Hey Luke," Rory called, walking into the diner.

Before she could make it to the counter to claim a stool, she got stopped by numerous people, telling her how beautiful her mom looked, asking her if they were back yet, blah, blah. Luke finally had to go into the back to get away from it all.

When Rory finally got away, she sat down at a stool and noticed Luke was gone. She smiled and called for him again, "Luke. It's safe to come out now."

"I wasn't hiding," Luke defended when he walked out of the storage room carrying a random pickle jar.

"Right. Well, while you weren't hiding, you might have at least found something better to carry out here," Rory joked, pointing to the full jar of pickles on the counter behind him. "Now, food."

Rory watched Luke while she was eating her food and drinking her coffee, and she concluded that she had been right. He wasn't exactly happy about her mom's engage—no marriage. After all, he was trying to shy away from those people who were still talking about it. When he had to serve those customers his face had a concentrated look on it. It almost looked like he was trying to think about something else entirely.

Rory rolled her eyes, "Luke, you know, sometimes if you want something, you have to go after it before it's too late. Now I realize this doesn't apply to you since it's already too late but—"

"Rory, what do you mean?" Luke interrupted her. It sounded too much like she was talking about Lorelai and he didn't want to hear that.

"Mom," Rory answered simply. "I know you don't exactly want to hear it, but just listen…for future reference or something. If you ever dream about something happening, you should really go after it. After all, dreams move on if you wait too long." 

_**I know I called you just in time to be too late.  
You know dreams move on if you wait too long.  
It took me 'til now to see that**_

After Rory left, Luke felt worse than he had when she came in, if that was possible. _I waited too long_ he told himself over and over again. Luke really had to just come to terms with this. Lorelai was going to keep coming in the diner, going to keep getting coffee, and he was going to have to keep serving it. He also couldn't let her see how she was feeling. He knew that was going to be hard, but he could do it. He was not trying to ruin her marriage, and she seemed really happy.

Luke sighed. If it meant her happiness, he could do it. He hoped. 

_**It could've been me  
Standin' there with you.  
It could've been me  
And my dreams comin' true.  
But those dreams move on  
If you wait too long.  
It took me 'til now to see  
It could've been me**_.

"Luke!" Lorelai sang out two weeks later. She was back from her honeymoon, coming to get her daily drink of life.

Luke saw all the townies turn at the sound of her voice. Ms. Patty and Babette practically screeched at her return.

"Lorelai how was the honeymoon?" Ms. Patty asked.

"How was he in bed?" Babette questioned. "You promised you'd let me know."

"He is awfully hot," Ms. Patty agreed. "I would have to say he's wonderful."

Luke made a face and tried to think about something distracting, while Lorelai just laughed. "That's for me to know, and you'd better not try to find out girls. I'd have to kill you."

"Luke!" She cried again. "Coffee!"

He smiled as she sat down and handed her a cup. "I had it right here the whole time."

Lorelai sighed as she took a drink. "Gosh. Max needs to take lessons from you. He can't make coffee as good as you…he can't even make coffee as good as me!"

"I'm sure he's satisfying in other ways," Luke quipped before he could think about what he was saying.

"Oh my gosh!" Lorelai exclaimed. "Did I just hear you right?"

Luke's face got incredibly red.

"I did hear you right!" Lorelai decided. "Dirty!" Luke just shook her head.

Lorelai knew Rory went in to see him one day. Rory had told Lorelai that Luke looked pretty miserable. Lorelai had pretty much guessed that he wasn't exactly happy about this marriage when she told him. It was further proven when he went off on one of his marriage rants to her and only to her. It was concluded to be truth when he didn't show up to the wedding.

Lorelai wasn't going to lie. She had felt attraction to Luke when she first saw him. She knew he was an attractive man and he had heavenly coffee. She just couldn't help but be disappointed. She thought she had imagined his signs when he never did anything to further their relationship.

Lorelai asked him to make her coffee to-go. She took the cup in her hand and she stood up to leave. Before she left, she leaned close to him, "I don't know if you know this, but…it could've been you."

Luke's eyes got wide and after she left he didn't hear the many townies questions. All he heard was her voice in his head. He felt like kicking himself. _It could've been me!_

_Now that I've posted, I wonder how good this actually was. It's a tradition with me to end the fic with the title of the song, so that explains the ending. So if you liked this, review! If you didn't like this, review! Tell me what you liked, tell me what I can do better, thanks friends! _


End file.
